


Burn It To The Ground

by adeclanfan



Series: Elizabeth!Verse [30]
Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: Gen, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-31
Updated: 2012-10-05
Packaged: 2017-11-06 09:11:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/417186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adeclanfan/pseuds/adeclanfan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Sanctuary is a pile of smoking rubble. Who is going to pick up the pieces?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sifting The Ashes

Burn It To The Ground

prompt – iphone

warning: violence and thoughts of suicide

 

Elizabeth slipped out of the taxi at the front gate to the Sanctuary, or at least what had been the front gates for scores of decades, until Helen's home was destroyed in a massive set of explosions two nights ago. A lump formed in her throat, even though she hadn't lived there for more than six months total. 

This place was important to the people Elizabeth loved and it broke her heart to see it in ruins, gutted and burned. 

SCIU agents and firefighters crawled over the rubble, still smoking in places, like a legion of ants seeking bits of food at a picnic. Ignoring them, she lost herself in trying to rebuild the Sanctuary in her mind's eye: the chapel over on the right, and the tower where she made love with Helen on the final night of her last visit over there to the left, closer to the calm, glassy water. She tried to pick out the place where her bedroom window over looked the river, but a hand on her shoulder broke her concentration. 

Elizabeth squinted up at the person touching her, and gave a small huff of relief when she realized it was only Nikola. “You scared me.”

“You shouldn't be here, Elizabeth.” He glanced around at the ants and his gaze settled on a figure about twenty yards from them. 

She recognized Greg Addison and gave a involuntary shudder. 

“I don't know what he'll do when he sees you here; You know he thinks she's dead and can't protect you any longer.” Nikola put his body between her and the head of SCIU, trying to hide her. “You are in danger.”

Beth thought about that, shook her head, disagreeing, “He only wanted me for information, Nikola. I told him about Richard Feliz and he threatened Feliz until he wanted out as Helen's money manager. Addison got what he wanted.”

“You didn't see what Helen did to him in New Mexico, Kitten.” Nikola pulled her against his body, protectively wrapping her in his arms. He inhaled deeply and stiffened. Nikola lifted her chin with a gentle finger. “Coming here was a mistake. You may be prepared to risk your own safety being here, Elizabeth, but what about your baby?”

“Baby?” Elizabeth asked, surprised, but deep down she knew he was right. Her body had been acting strangely the last few weeks, nightmares that seemed real and dizzy spells out of nowhere. Beth wondered, just last night in fact, if she might be pregnant. The timing was perfectly horrid, so of course she would get two little lines on the plastic stick if she went and bought one. No need to waste the money on pregnancy tests when you had a vampire with a superior sense of smell. “Do I really smell pregnant?”

Nikola ignored her question, and demanded, “Why did you come here, Kitten?”

“I want to help make Helen's death cover story more believable. I'm the grieving girlfriend, waiting to see if they pull her body from the rubble.” 

It didn't take much play acting to bring real tears to her eyes. All she needed was to think about Declan's ashen face as he showed her the surveillance camera videos he'd managed to download from the Sanctuary's cloud server. He'd held her while she cried and screamed and carried on like a complete basket case, but it didn't escape her attention that he'd been shedding tears of his own right along with her. 

“I belong here, Nikola.”

If Helen hadn't called as soon as she was safely out of the burning building, to tell Beth she was alive, Elizabeth might have done something dramatic, and... fatal. Her damn iPhone, the latest model and a recent gift from Henry, saved her from being locked-up on a suicide watch. It took a lot to rile Declan, but he'd been furious that she'd considered joining Helen in death, even for a minute while crazy with grief. Beth earned the sharp side of Declan's tongue and a refresher course on his temper. 

The conversation had gone to hell, with him shouting at her about how this wasn't a bloody Shakespearean tragedy and her name wasn't Juliet. Declan had seen her stubborn expression, and the hard look he returned said very clearly, 'Just try it and see what happens to you, luv.' She didn't doubt Declan would do anything to keep her safe.

Declan never mentioned marriage, but he'd stared hard at Helen's engagement ring, now worn on Elizabeth's finger, for a long time with a strange expression on his face the first time he saw it. The rape, the plane crash, the time she was held by SCIU and finally rescued by Helen, it all made him quieter, more serious; it changed things between them, too. He said he didn't want to lose her, and no matter how many times she tried to tell him that he wouldn't lose her, Declan's anxiety didn't ease. Something was going on in his head and Elizabeth hadn't been able to get him to talk about it, yet. 

Would having a baby with him change their relationship, too? Silly question. Of course, it would. The real question would be if the relationship got stronger under that kind of stress or imploded. She didn't want to think about carrying and raising his child without him at her side every step of the way. 

Beth was so lost in her private thoughts, she didn't hear Addison come up behind her. His voice caused her to yelp and startle in the vampire's embrace. 

“We've pulled three bodies out of the rubble. All three were Hollow Earth insurgents and they were filled with bullet holes.”

Elizabeth turned her head to look at him, “Did you look in the main lab?”

“We can't even find the main lab in what's left. I've never seen a fire burn so hot and for so long. What the hell was Magnus keeping in there?”

Nikola rubbed his cheek against the top of Beth's head, like a cat marking its scent. His arms tightened around her until it was hard for her to breathe. “There won't be anything left to find of the lab, Elizabeth. We should get you back to your hotel, now.”

“I'd like to know if Helen has contacted you in the last two days,” Addison addressed the comment specifically to Beth. 

The broken parts inside of Elizabeth howled at his question. She wasn't that helpless, drugged out person in the hospital bed; Beth had had four months to heal from her physical injuries, but the damage in her head, the way he'd broken her, was still raw. Addison made a fatal mistake by putting a hand on her. Four months of pent up emotions she'd buried deep surfaced in one violent explosion. 

Several minutes later the red haze for fury cleared from her vision and Elizabeth found herself pinned under Nikola, still growling like a wild animal. Addison was also on the ground clutching a broken, bleeding nose. He had parallel scratch marks from her nails on his cheek and one of his hands. 

“Easy, Kitten, easy. Calm down. All this ass-kicking can't be good for your baby.” To Addison, Nikola said, “I think Elizabeth's too grief stricken and full of baby hormones to answer questions.”

Nikola let her up and Beth glared at Addison, “This is on you. You are responsible for Helen being dead, and I won't forget. No one will forget.” Her voice rose as she spit the words at him until she was screaming and attracting the attention of everyone in a five block radius. “You killed my fiancee!” She let all the emotions from the other night find their outlet in that moment and she started to sob. 

The look of horrified shock on Addison's face was mildly satisfying. 

“Miss Watson, I... “

Nikola pulled her to her feet and gave Addison a shrug small shrug to explain her behavior. “Pregnant abnormals get a little crazy, and dangerous. I'll just get her out of here.” He scooped Beth into his arms and turned to leave. 

Addison called after them, “I swear I had nothing to do with this, and I am very sorry.”

Nikola put her into his rental car with a scowl. “Your little stunt is going to get both our asses kicked, you know that don't you?”

Elizabeth smirked, eyes narrowed, “I saw at least one news camera.”

Tesla rolled his eyes at her, “Bloody hell.”

=-=-=-=-=-=

Two minutes into the car ride, her iPhone rang. It was Declan's ring-tone. 

Crap. 

Elizabeth let it go to voice-mail, and after a minute, it started ringing, again. 

Double crap. 

She answered it, “Hello.”

“Please, tell me you didn't just take a taxi to the Sanctuary and get into a fist fight with Addison.”

“Okay, Dec, I didn't do either of those things.”

“Fuck me,” Declan groaned, “you really are mad as a hatter. I should've locked you in a padded cell back in London. For my sanity!”

Elizabeth sighed. “It's okay, Declan. Nikola rescued me from the bad SCIU man.”

Declan sighed, “Get your ass back to the hotel. I'm almost there myself.” He hung up without waiting for her answer. 

The man expected his commands to be obeyed and they nearly always were. Declan could be a total hard-ass when he wanted to be; of course he could, he was an experienced Head of House and long time protege of James Watson. The loving gentleness he always showed her lulled her into forgetting Declan was a dangerous man.

The ride to the hotel, the same one she'd picked when they needed a posh place to hide Helen from everyone when she'd been possessed by Afina, was done in silence. 

Nikola took the key card from her and opened the door, then held it so she could enter first, a true gentleman. 

Declan was standing at the bar and he took one look at her and Nikola and scowled pointedly at the vampire. “I appreciate the rescue, so don't take this the wrong way, but get the hell out.”

“I'll just go order myself that bottle of red and put it on your room tab.” Nikola made a slow, measured exit. Vampires didn't rush, it wasn't cool. 

“Fine,” Declan called after him. “You've earned it.”

Elizabeth decided the best defense with a pissed off Declan was to go on the offensive. “I'm not mental, you know. And I wouldn't kill myself, not even over losing Helen. I wouldn't do that to you or my family, so I don't need a padded room.” She crossed her arms over her chest defensively, bracing for the explosion.

Her lover and Head of House snorted, “Come here.”

Beth eyed him warily. He sounded calmer, more reasonable, and it was suspicious. “I think I'll just stand over here.”

“Come. Here. Elizabeth.” 

Oh, shit.

Beth went to him and Declan cupped her cheek in his huge hand. Then, he leaned down and brushed his lips lightly over hers, making her sigh. It was completely unexpected when he tossed her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry and carried her over to the couch. 

He hauled her over his lap, face down. “Now, let's see if I remember anything from the lesson Magnus gave me.” Declan lifted her blouse up and tugged her skirt and panties down, then smacked her bare ass hard with his hand. “It's coming back to me, now.” He gave her backside two more stinging swats. “Nope, not enough.” He gave her four more. Tears were trailing her cheeks after the last one. “I feel much better. How about you?” 

Elizabeth sobbed, “I'm sorry.”

“I should hope so.” He let her up. “Don't you go near Addison alone, not ever again, understand me?” Dec scowled. “I've enough reasons already to kill that man. It would give me entirely too much pleasure.” 

Elizabeth put her clothes back on and snuggled next to Declan on the couch. “I think I broke his nose. And he had claw marks on his face.”

“You should go scrub under your nails and we need to change hotels tonight.”

“That won't be necessary...” A female voice told them and Elizabeth looked up with a gasp of surprise as Helen emerged from the bedroom. “Is this a private spanking party, or can anyone join in?”

Elizabeth leaped off the couch and rushed into Helen's waiting arms, practically knocking them both over. “Easy, 'Lizabeth. I've got a broken rib.”

“Don't you ever ever scare me like that again! I think you took years off my life watching you fight all those men, then blow the Sanctuary up with yourself inside!” Elizabeth broke down and started to cry, again. “I thought you were dead.”

“And she thought about trying to fly from the roof, too.”

Beth glared at Declan. “I didn't! Not really.”

Helen frowned, “I called as soon as I was able, baby. I knew it would be hard for you to watch.” Helen kissed her lips. “I was out of cards to play, so I dealt a new hand.”

“A new hand?”

“I packed your stuff, the bags are just inside the bedroom door. I have something to show you.” She looked at Declan, now leaning causally against the back of the couch, arms crossed, watching them. “Both of you.”

Declan snorted, “I can't wait to hear this.”

“Get the bags, Declan, if you please. I have a rental car in the underground garage.”

Elizabeth looked at her. “Did you have to blow everything up?”

Magnus took her face in her hands and kissed Beth, again. “Material possessions can be easily replaced. The only thing I really need is you, Elizabeth.” 

 

To Be Continued... 

Do you want more? I really need to know. *sigh*


	2. Building It Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prompt- Sanctuary For None

“While I appreciate what you were trying to do, 'Lizabeth. Declan was absolutely right to redden your backside for even considering taking a taxi on your own and getting into a public confrontation Greg Addison.” Helen's tone was tense, and more than a bit annoyed, “that was foolish and dangerous. It's not like you.” 

Beth rolled her eyes from her place in the shotgun seat, but didn't say anything. Declan saw her eye-roll and the corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk. 

In the parking garage, they loaded their bags into the trunk and Helen handed Declan the keys, insisting he drive. She rode in the back of the silver rental suv, with a black hoodie covering her hair and sunglasses covering most of her face. 

Declan was watching her face in the rear view mirror as much as he was watching the road. 

“Where are we going?” Beth asked, looking around at the other cars nervously. 

There was a long silence, then Helen finally said, “I'll explain when we get to the cavern. Declan, please get off at the next exit and turn right. It's still another thirty miles east after the turn off.”

Declan shrugged, “Right it is, guv.” and took the next exit. 

The turnoff led onto a paved two lane road. The road was decently maintained, but each small jolt sent a fresh flair of pain into Elizabeth's backside. She tried not to wince, but it took effort. Her situation wasn't lost on Declan. It amused him, the bastard. 

“Promise me you won't ever do something like that again, Elizabeth.”

Beth turned and looked over her shoulder at Helen, meeting her eyes. “I won't. You have my word.” 

Her vow had little to do with Helen's worries and everything to do with Nikola confirming her secret fear that she was pregnant. Risk for herself was acceptable, risk for a baby... not so much. The trauma of her experiences with SCIU had left her clinging to Helen and Declan for support the last few months. She'd all but given up her dreams of owning her own restaurant in New York because living on her own and away from them left her feeling down and isolated. 

They probably thought she was afraid to live alone now, but that wasn't it, or at least not the biggest part of it. She liked having someone to spend her evenings with, someone in her bed every night to hold her. People who knew of her living arrangements were amazed shacking up with two people on two different continents could actually be made to work. Or it worked most of the time. Her siblings teased her relentlessly about her crazy sex life. 

There were days when she needed space, of course, and her lovers were sensitive enough to her moods to give her some breathing room. 

“Hey, we didn't tell Nikola we were leaving,” Beth observed.

“I'll send Kate and Henry to fetch him in the morning. If Addison comes knocking, I want someone from our little party still in their room to throw him off the trail.”

The thirty miles passed quickly, and soon they reached the end of the paved road. The dirt led off in two directions straight ahead and to the left. “If it were anyone else but you, Declan, I'd have you stop here and I'd blindfold you both. I need you to know the way. In case of an emergency, you may need to lead people here. It's not the only entrance, but this one can accommodate the most cars without being noticed.” She leaned forward in her seat, “do me a favor, 'Lizabeth, and climb back here with me for this last bit.”

Elizabeth unfastened her seat-belt and slipped between the seats. Helen pulled Beth roughly onto her lap and proceeded to kiss her into incoherence while Declan negotiated the narrow dirt road. The road ended in a cave dug into the side of a small mountain. Helen let Beth go and scooted out from under her to get into the shotgun seat. “Now, take it slow, there will be a point where the tunnel forks, take the right fork.”

The tunnel was dark and narrow enough on either side of the SUV to kick Elizabeth's anxiety level up a few notches. “Are we there yet?” she winced at how the question sounded like something a parent hears from the back seat on a family road trip. 

“Almost there,” Helen assured her. “I forgot you aren't fond of enclosed spaces.”

The tunnel opened into a cavern that was the size of a small parking garage. Half a dozen vehicles of various makes and models parked at one end of the long concrete slab. That was where Declan parked their rental. Helen was the first one unbuckled and out the door. Declan was second, and when Beth finally shut the door, Helen was waiting for her with a length of silk scarf in her hands. 

“What's that for?” Elizabeth gestured at the scarf, knowing full well she was going to get blindfolded or tied up or something kinky. 

Helen smiled at Beth's suspicious frown. “I want you to be surprised.” 

Beth winced, blindfolded it was, then. She sighed dramatically, but submitted to Helen tying the fabric over her eyes. 

Helen was careful not to knot the scarf too tight or get Elizabeth's hair caught in it. “How does that feel, baby?”

“Silly and unnecessary.”

“What a mouthy little troublemaker you are today,” Helen scolded her playfully and kissed her on her swollen lips. 

Elizabeth heard Declan snort from somewhere to her left at Helen's assessment of her current mood. 

“Shall we be off then?”

Helen took her right hand and Declan her left and the walked straight ahead until they reached what must have been a door. There was a bunch of rustling and then a beep and the sound of metal sliding to a stop with a clang.

“Is that what I think it is?” Declan muttered, quietly. 

There was a smile in Helen's voice, “it is.” 

They led her forward and Beth could tell by the echoing sound of their voices that it was a small room. Then, she had to scramble to get a better grip on Declan's hand because the room swayed and started to move, not up or down, but sideways, like a subway car. The effect was disconcerting and a bit nauseating because she couldn't see. 

“Are you alright, luv?” Declan pulled Elizabeth into his arms and steadying her with the solid warmth of his body. “We're just taking a train.”

“Oh, yeah, I got that much.”

Helen stroked her cheek, lightly. “In another minute, we'll begin to descend. You'll feel it in the pit of your stomach.”

Beneath the blindfold, Beth winced, “that's what I'm afraid of.”

“You're not going to vomit on me are you, 'Lizabeth?” 

It was a fair question. One of their early dates had involved a midnight ride on the London Eye, and it ended abruptly with Beth vomiting all over the sidewalk about three steps after they exited the ride car. Not her finest moment. “I dunno, Dec. I just hope this doesn't go on too long,” she whispered, burying her face in his shoulder and taking deep breaths of his aftershave lotion. 

Helen was behind her, then, rubbing Beth's back soothingly; both her lovers' touch helped tremendously, their strange poly-amorous mating bond was, as always, a blessing and a curse rolled into one.

The wild ride came to a jerking stop and the door hissed as it opened for them to exit. 

“Watch your step. There are three stairs going down, starting... now.”

They negotiated the steps and took about five or six steps forward, which was double that for Elizabeth's shorter legs, then stopped. 

Declan whistled. Then, he said, “not what I had in mind, but that explains a lot.”

“That's it? That's all you have to say?” Helen demanded. 

“I knew what you were up to, but James' email didn't go into detail.”

“The email you said you made up?” And that she'd tried to 'torture' him into revealing on the floor of her office. 

“A lie. You aren't the only one who knows how to keep their secrets, guv.”

“Hello...” Beth grumbled, “excuse me, before you start throwing punches, can I take the damn scarf off my eyes?”

“Oh, yes, of course.” Helen's fingers gently unfastened the silky material and it tickled Beth's neck as she pulled it away, making Elizabeth shiver. “Welcome to my new Sanctuary, Elizabeth.”

Elizabeth's eyes took a second to adjust to the light, but then it was hard for her brain to process what she was seeing. There were two huge curving buildings in the distance, with a waterfall and small waterway dotted with waterlilies separating them. Overhead the sky was a glowing dome far above their heads with huge arching supports. Closer to them in the great expanse of open cavernous space was some sort of strange light rail system. A ball zipped along the four tracks and disappeared over their heads. 

“Where is this place?”

“This is unoccupied Hollow Earth territory I have claimed. One of three pockets of Hollow Earth land I've annexed for our people and been building on in North and South America since 1905.” 

“Holy shit.”

“Language, 'Lizabeth. Really...” she scolded her, but it was halfhearted. Helen's entire being swelled with pride as she pointed out different windows and lectured of various building techniques they had to redevelop from her memories just to even begin a project such as this.

Elizabeth allowed herself to be tugged down the path to the entrance of one of the buildings and then into a normal looking elevator. Or at least it looked normal, until it started to move at an incline further into the wall of the cavern. “Whoa. Not again.”

“It's called an inclinator, it moves on the diagonal. They use them in Las Vegas at the Luxor hotel.” 

Beth scowled. “Scratch that place off my bucket list. I don't like this feeling.” 

Declan laughed and pulled her into a hug. “Poor 'Lizabeth.”

“And, we're here.” 

Sure enough, the horrid thing stopped and gave a little ding before the door slid open. 

A small, elegantly appointed little foyer awaited them just outside the elevator. It branched left and right, but also had two elegantly carved doors directly ahead of them. Helen went to the doors and placed her eye to the scanner box. It made musical beeps and a loud series of click as the locks, and there were several of them, disengaged. 

Pushing the doors open, Helen revealed a large, high ceiling-ed living area with floor to ceiling windows, obviously high in the side of the cavern wall, they gave a gorgeous view of the cave in which the new Sanctuary was built. 

Helen led them past the half circle of couches facing the picture window, so they could look down. 

“Wow. This is a high rent suite.”

Helen gave an amused smirk and a raised eyebrow at her, “this is our new home. There are two suites and a guest room. And an adjoining room that could easily be turned into a nursery.” When, Beth's jaw dropped, Helen tsked at her. “Did you think I wouldn't design my living areas without my fiancee's needs in mind?” 

The tense clench of Declan's jaw made Elizabeth step between them and put a hand on his chest, “so is it set up like your old rooms with me on one side and you on the other?”

“Yes. But I've also included a small kitchen and dining room, a library, and a few surprises you'll both have to discover on your own.” 

Helen sat down on one of the couches, tucking her legs up under her, demurely. She'd ditched her shoes somewhere when Beth wasn't looking. “I've programmed all the eye scanners to give you and Declan complete access. Although,” she smirked at her and Declan, “if I find you snooping in my underwear drawer or nicking my toothpaste, I might change my mind.” Elizabeth had been punished once for stealing Helen's toothpaste when hers ran out while Helen was out of town. Declan had been in town to witness the 'punishment'. 

“One of the best things about building into the side of a cliff is that if we need more rooms, eventually, we only have to dig them out of the porous stone. Another is that the temperature in here is a comfortable seventy degrees year round.”

“Have you been living here long?”

Helen shrugged, “obviously, not in the last year, or someone would have noticed my absence.”

“Where does the Praxian transport system take you?” Declan asked, staring at it out the window. 

“Oh, let's see... We have two additional Hollow Earth Sanctuaries in various stages of construction, under North Carolina and a narrow section of Hollow Earth where the boarders of Peru, Brazil and Columbia meet in South America. I've been eying a large pocket of land under Toronto, but at the moment we don't have the capital to build another Sanctuary in North America. The team building the Trans-Atlantic transport tubes are nearly finished tunneling to London. New York is our gateway point for London. New York Sanctuary also has a direct connect to South Carolina. This Sanctuary only connects to South America and the formerly Praxian occupied areas of Hollow Earth, so far, mostly for the same reason Praxis left this continent alone, the super volcano under Yellowstone makes the sections of Hollow Earth under America unstable. I have a team drawing plans for the South Carolina direct route much further south under southern Nevada and Utah.”

“Oh wow. That's amazing.” 

“We've been quite busy these last hundred years.” 

“I can see that.”

“On a more personal note, former Moscow Head of House Andrei Markov has been in charge of the team working on the London tubes, and was difficult to locate when your twin came to the United States looking for him. He's currently taking paternity leave to be with her and the baby for a few months.” 

Declan growled at the mention of Markov. He hated Andrei with a passion, as Beth and Helen were well aware. Having the man for a brother in law was going to prove... interesting. 

“Would you like to see your room? It has a large private bath and dressing room...”

Elizabeth looked from Declan to Helen and back, eyes twinkling with mischief, “how big is the bed?”

“Big enough to accommodate us quite easily.”

“So three or four?”

Helen's eyes narrowed, “planning orgies are we?”

“I don't know...” Elizabeth teased, “maybe.” 

“The hell you are...” Declan growled. He tossed her over his shoulder as if she weighed nothing at all and followed Magnus through an archway and down a hall to Beth's bedroom. “There will be no bloody orgies.”

Beth was squealing and kicking and trying to get down, but Declan's grip didn't falter. Helen opened her door and Declan dumped Beth on the bed. Helen and Declan wore identical expressions of hunger as they looked down at her on the bed. 

Elizabeth was able to pull her t-shirt over her head and toss it away before they were on her, swatting her hands away from her bra and undressing her themselves. Declan had her jeans and panties off in what must have been a world record time. Hands were everywhere, caressing and petting, pinching lightly on her nipples until she was lost in sensation. 

With a sigh, she gave in to them. Beth surrendered and let them carry her away on waves of pleasure and happiness, rocking her between them until they are all sated and exhausted. 

A brief nap and they were ready for a second round of lovemaking. This time Elizabeth dictated the action, which was just as much fun. Especially, when she made Helen and Declan have their usual brand of rough and tumble sex, so she could watch from every possible angle. Elizabeth giggled and couldn't wait to tell Kate how Helen's new Sanctuary came with live in room porn. 

To Beth, the important thing was that Helen was alive, and had been thinking of her even while she was over one hundred years away. If anything was an indication of undying love, that was it. 

The End... For now.


End file.
